


Say Something

by OwlPippin



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Comatose, Eventual Fluff, Hospitalization, M/M, My OTP, i swear it gets better
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-13
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2019-02-14 11:28:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13006830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OwlPippin/pseuds/OwlPippin
Summary: One-shotKise gets a concerning call on the job while he is in Australia. The worst part is, his wedding is supposed to be in four months.





	Say Something

**Author's Note:**

> I was listening to the song Say Something a few months ago and started this, but I never got more than a page done. Until now. I actually finished this. Wow. Okay. Um, please enjoy.

Kise had been on break for a photoshoot in Australia when he got the call. He swallowed a piece of fruit before answering, not bothering to check the caller ID.   
“Hello,” he answered in a sing-song voice. He smiled at one of the female models that walked past him. However, his smile quickly fell when he heard someone crying on the other end of the call.   
“Ryouta?” asked the crying, feminine voice. He recognized the voice of who called him with his given name. It was his future mother in law, and the fact she was sobbing on the other line struck terror into Kise’s mind.   
“Yeah it’s me. What’s wrong? What happened? Is everything okay?” He asked back. Of course there wasn’t anything ‘okay’, but it was a force of habit to ask. The woman began stuttering on the other line.   
“I-i-it’s Tetsu. He...he…” She broke and couldn’t finish her sentence. Kise didn’t need the rest of her sentence to feel his heart drop to his feet. He felt time stop. His Fiance was in some sort of trouble and he needed to get back as soon as possible. The blond turned to the female assistant to his left and told her to book him the first flight home. She was about to ask why when she saw the tears forming in the model’s eyes. She set to work quickly with a short nod. Kise tried to calm the woman on the other end of the phone call enough so she could tell him what happened.   
It was an agonizing 12 hours until Kise’s flight landed in Hameda Airport. Normally, he wouldn’t have had to wait so long, but the flight kept being delayed and no other airline was flying to Japan that day. He didn’t sleep, he didn’t eat. All the blond did was pace, worry, and squeeze a stress ball his assistant got him while she waited with him for the plane.   
As soon as Kise could leave the plane, he ran and called a taxi. He ran to the luggage return and impatiently tapped his foot as he waited for his bags. As soon as he saw them, he grabbed them and pushed past people, angering many, and ran to the pick-up area. Thankfully, his taxi had just pulled up. Kise didn’t give the driver the chance to break all the way before he tried opening the door. Once safely inside the vehicle, the model just about shouted at the man to go to the hospital Tetsuya’s mother told him they were at.   
“And step on it. Please. I don’t know how much more time I have left!” He said, followed quickly by an apology with a voice crack. The driver could see how in pain emotionally Kise was and nodded, dismissing his previous annoyance at the young man in his back seat.   
“I can’t drive more than the speed limit, though, I’m sorry,” said the driver, as he pulled away from the airport.   
“I’ll pay for any speeding tickets you get. Please just...He’s dying. I can’t risk the chance of being too late to see him.” Kise let out a sob he had been holding back for the past 12 hours.   
“Who is he?” The driver asked, putting more pressure on the gas pedal.   
“My Fiancee, the love of my life. I… I can’t,” Kise couldn’t finish his thoughts aloud. He went back to crying. The driver wasn’t a supporter of homosexuals, but he understood the pain Kise was in. He had been in a similar position when his late wife died. No one, he thought, deserved to go through that pain of being too late. Even if they were gay. So the man in the driver’s seat drove as fast as he could, weaving in and out of traffic, getting angered honks from others commuting.   
“We’re almost there, hang on,” the driver said after ten minutes of driving. It felt like hours to Kise, though. Another five minutes passed by the time they pulled up to the hospital. Kise thanked the driver countless times and gave him a very large tip. Bags in hand, Kise walked swiftly inside. His eyes scanned the room for the family of Tetsuya and he quickly spotted the familiar long, blue hair of his soon-to-be Mother In Law. Her eyes met his as she stood from her chair. The two made their way towards each other, both obviously in distress.   
The older woman was small, so to really hug her, Kise had to bend down a little. They stayed in each other’s embrace for some time, a silent communication between the two of them glad that the other was there. Once they let go of each other, Kise looked into her eyes and was immediately reminded how Tetsuya had her eyes. Beautiful, large, blue eyes that held so much love in them. After another moment, he spoke.  
“How is he? Can I see him?” his voice was filled with worry.   
“He is stable. The doctors placed him in a medically induced coma for the time-being. Now we’re just...waiting for him to wake up. His father and my mother are in the room now, I-” she took a deep breath, steadying herself. “I came down here to wait for you. I can’t stand to see my son like that… It hurts too much…”  
“He’s alive,” Kise confirmed. She nodded. “As long as he’s alive, there shouldn’t be anything to worry about. He’ll wake up...he has to… the wedding is in four months…”   
“We can postpone it if necessary, but of course I hope it won’t be.” She paused, looking up into the golden eyes of her son’s lover. She certainly never thought that her little boy would end up with another man, but she couldn’t have picked a better partner for him even if she tried. “I can take you to see him now, if you’d like.”   
Kise nodded, a sudden wave of exhaustion washing over him. But he couldn’t rest now. Not until he saw the face of the man he loved. Picking up his bags once more, he followed Tetsuya’s mother up to his hospital room. It was a long ride up the elevator, they were keeping him on the fifth floor.   
His heart dropped as he entered the room. The soft hum of the machines, the quiet crying of Tetsuya’s grandmother by the window, the beeping of the heart monitor. Tetsuya’s father looked up from the bed and made his way over to his wife, giving a short nod to Kise as they passed each other. Kise made a b-line to the bed where his beloved lay. So many tubes and wires protruded out of his body that he looked more like some lab experiment than a human being. He was covered in bruises as well and cuts, a few bandages here and there. For the second time that day, Kise broke down and cried, taking hold of his love’s cold hand. He always had cold hands, but now they were freezing to the touch. He placed a kiss on Tetsuya’s knuckles as he sobbed. A shaky kiss to his forehead as well.   
Kise had never felt so powerless in his life. In sports, he could do anything. He was talented in every respect except academics. Kise could sing, act, dance, write, draw, play any sport he desired and yet, none of that mattered. Nothing mattered when it came to Tetsuya. Because to Kise, Tetsuya was everything. The morning light, bird song, the smell of vanilla, every beautiful thing in existence was Tetsuya. And now he was laying in a cold bed covered in injuries. None of the people in that hospital knew when he would wake, or if he would at all. It scared Kise more than anything. And he blamed himself. Kise blamed himself for not being with him. Blamed himself for leaving to Australia for the stupid photoshoot. He thought that if he had just been there things could have turned out differently. He sputtered out apologies under his breath in between sobs.   
***  
A month later, Tetsuya was still asleep. Kise was basically living at the hospital. At least once a week, one of Tetsuya’s relatives or friends from middle school would come take watch over the blue haired young man so Kise could go home to bathe and sleep. He wouldn’t eat unless one of the nurses made him eat by bringing him food.   
“Kise,” a shorter, red haired man said as he entered the room. “Go home and rest.”  
“Akashicchi?” Kise asked upon seeing the old captain to his middle school team. “No. No, I’m fine. I’m gonna stay here.” Akashi pulled a chair next to Kise’s and sat in it, placing a hand on his shoulder.   
“You need your rest. You know he would want you to take care of yourself.”  
“I want to be here when he wakes up.”  
“I know you do. Believe me, I know. But you need to sleep. You’ve barely slept all month and not to mention your scent as of now.” Kise shook his head at Akashi’s words. “Look, Murasakibara is at your house and cooking for you. He will help. And I will call you if Kuroko wakes up the moment it happens.”   
There was a pause.   
“You promise?” Kise asked. Akashi nodded.   
“I promise. Please take care of yourself. There’s a car waiting for you downstairs already.”  
“Thank you…” Kise looked back to Tetsuya and kissed his forehead before getting up. He was a bit shaky having barely left the chair only to use the bathroom. “I’ll be back soon, love. I promise,” he said to the motionless body of his fiance. No response as usual, just the heart monitor and steady breathing of Tetsuya.   
When Kise arrived home, the tallest person he ever met greeted him with a warm meal.   
“Kisechin looks too skinny and weak. Eat this,” the purple haired giant said, placing the plate of food on the breakfast bar counter. Kise knew he even if he tried, he wouldn’t win an argument about not being hungry with Murasakibara. The man could smell someone skipping a meal three kilometers away.   
Once Kise finished his meal, he thanked Murasakibara and went to the bathroom to shower, only to find a bath already drawn for him with the smell of lavender in the air. He figured Akashi must have asked Murasakibara to start it as Kise was on his way there, because there was still steam rising from the water. He sighed and undressed himself before lowering his body into the tub. The heat relaxed his muscles from the sitting position he had been in the past week. Eventually, Kise succumbed to his exhaustion and fell asleep, his head safely above the water line. Another ten minutes passed before Murasakibara went to check on Kise. Upon seeing the blond fast asleep in the tub, Murasakibara shook his head before kneeling down to take the plug out from the bottom, allowing the water to drain. He didn’t want to wake Kise, especially knowing what he was going through right now. Carefully, the taller man toweled down the naked model as he slept so he was dry. Once that was done, he scooped Kise in his arms and carried him to his bed, gently laying him down in the plush blankets. He tucked Kise in as a mother would to her small child and looked at his sleeping face with worry.   
“It will be okay, Kisechin,” he said quietly. “Kurochin is strong and will wake up soon. I know he will.”   
With that, Murasakibara left the room and sat himself on the couch in Kise’s living room.   
“Kurochin has to wake up... “ He said to himself before grabbing his shopping bag full of snacks and turning on the tv.   
***  
Kise had to cancel the wedding. It had been four months since Tetsuya was put into a coma to save his life. He sent apologies out to all the guests, all of whom returned with their condolences and well wishes. Many sent sweets and other confections to Kise and Tetsuya’s families in response. Kise didn’t eat a single thing they sent. Instead, the things he personally received, he either gave to Tetsuya’s family, the nurses, or Murasakibara. Of course, Murasakibara insisted Kise eat some of what they sent. The giant had temporarily moved into Kise’s guest bedroom to make sure he was eating correctly and taking care of himself.   
The model no longer went a week without showering or sleeping. He had let Kagami, Tetsuya’s best friend, convince him that he needed enough sleep. So Kagami watched over Tetsuya most nights if his family couldn’t while Kise would stay all day. Tetsuya’s room was filled with balloons, flowers, get well soon cards, and stuffed animals. The animals Kise would take home each night and give to Nigou, Tetsuya’s dog. The small dog had been very depressed since his owner got into that accident. Kise knew it. He cuddled with the dog every night and at least once a week snuck him into the hospital to see his master. He was a good dog, never barked, only lay at the foot of the bed Tetsuya lay on.   
“Aquarius is in high standings today,” a voice said one day. Kise and Nigou looked up to see a familiar mop of green hair and glasses enter the hospital room.   
“Midorimacchi…” Kise said, surprised to see him. He and Tetsuya never saw eye-to-eye when they were in school together, so it was definitely strange to see the man here. In his hand he held a plastic bag containing a few items.   
“I… I’m sorry I haven’t come to visit earlier. But it’s been a few months and I thought you could use some more luck. Oha Asa says Aquarius is on the top today. Gemini being third. My own is tenth.” Midorima pulled out a bag of Goldfish crackers and set it next to Tetsuya on the food tray. Then, he pulled out a box of legos and handed them to Kise. His own lucky item was a whistle, which hung on a cord around his neck.   
“Thank you, Midorimacchi. That means a lot, especially coming from you.”  
“Of course. I would stay longer, but, I have to get back to my own hospital. I’ve got a surgery in a few hours to prep for,” he said, his gaze passing over Tetsuya.   
“I understand,” Kise responded. Midorima nodded and started to leave. “He will wake up, right?”  
Midorima turned around and faced Kise once more.   
“In my professional opinion or personal thoughts?”  
“Both, I guess…” Midorima paused for a moment.   
“Yes. To both. He has a healthy body and mind. I’m just not sure when. But with your lucky items, anything is possible.”   
“Thank you.”  
“Of course.”  
“Good luck on your surgery today,” Kise added just before Midorima left.   
“Good luck to you as well, Kise,” Midorima said. And then, he left.   
***  
It took two of Kise’s friends to keep him from yelling at the doctors. One, a short, pink haired woman, the other, a tall and tanned man.   
“No!” Kise shouted in the small hospital room while his friends took hold of one arm each. “No! You can’t pull the plug! He hasn’t woken up yet!” Tears streamed down his and the woman’s face. The taller man just looked like he was in pain.   
“Sir, I’m sorry. It’s been almost a year. We have to, it’s procedure,” said the doctor. A few other doctors were in the room as well with a nurse or two that had grown fond of Kise during his visits.   
“No! There has to be another way! I’ll pay every bill to keep him alive you can’t do this!” Kise dropped to his knees, taking his two friends down with him.   
“Ki-chan…” the pink haired woman said, wrapping her arms around him.   
“Look, you can’t just kill him. He’s breathing, his heart is pumping blood. Why do you have to pull the plug when you have no reason to?” The tanned man said, standing up.   
“Like I said, it is procedure that if the patient does not awaken within a year-”  
“Bullshit. You are going to keep Tetsu on those machines until he wakes up. I’m not letting you let him die.”  
“I’m very sorry, but-”  
“What’s going on here?” A voice sounded. In walked Kagami and Akashi.   
“They said they’re gonna fucking pull the plug.”  
“Daiki, calm yourself,” Akashi told him, his one golden eye shimmering. Reluctantly, Aomine backed down. Kagami stood in shock, unsure of what to say. After a moment, he walked over to Momoi and Kise, kneeling down beside them both and rubbing Kise’s back.   
“Doctor, surely there is something you can do to keep us from having to plan a funeral,” Akashi didn’t ask. At the word ‘funeral’, Kise let out a loud sob. “My family is very influential as are we wealthy. I’m positive we can afford to keep my friend alive, yes?” It wasn’t really a question. This was an order. An order to keep Tetsuya alive. The doctor couldn’t seem to avert his gaze from Akashi’s golden eye.   
“W-well sir-”  
“Right?” Akashi hardened his gaze more. He was the absolute at this moment. His other self had taken over in the hall when he heard Kise shouting.   
“I can find a way to give him more time. But I cannot keep him on the machines forever.”  
“It won’t be needed forever. He will waken. Now if you please, leave my friends and I.”  
Without another word, the doctors and nurses left the room. The people left in the room circled around Kise. He could barely speak, let alone stand.   
“Th-tha-” he tried to speak. The model was shaking too hard to to truly speak, but Akashi got the message.   
“There is no need to thank me, Ryouta. I’ve only done what anyone else here would have if they could.” Akashi knelt in front of Kise so he could get a good look at his face. The blond’s eyes were puffed up and red from the crying. Possibly lack of sleep as well. Over the past few months, Kise gradually went back to modeling, but only for local photoshoots. He didn’t want to be more than 100km away from his love lest he woke up. He only modeled so he could afford to keep Tetsuya alive. If he wasn’t in front of cameras, he was at the hospital or home, resting. The five young adults stayed there the rest of the day with Kise, canceling other plans and calling into work saying they couldn’t make it. Eventually, someone had called Murasakibara and Midorima. While the giant could come visit, Midorima had important things to do at his own hospital and couldn’t make it, but promised to visit the next day. Each person in that room had a personal connection to the one laying in the hospital bed. And each one’s heart ached for Kise watching his fiance waste away.   
***  
It wasn’t until a few weeks later that Kise actually started losing hope. One year and three days after Tetsuya had been put into a coma. It was late at night. The only sound in the room was Tetsuya’s breathing and the beeping of the heart monitor. Kise took Tetsuya’s thin, bony, hand and placed it on his own cheek.   
“Love,” Kise whispered. “I don’t know if you can hear me but… but I need you to wake up. Please, Tetsuya… I’m so lost without you and I don’t know how much longer they’ll keep you on the machines.” Kise’s breath hitched in his throat as he spoke.   
“Please, wake up. I need you. I need to hear your voice and see your smile. Nigou misses you. So do your parents. And I’m positive your grandma doesn’t want you to join her yet. You should have been at the funeral. She… We all miss you. Please Tetsuya, say something. I don’t want to, but I’m losing all hope that I’ll ever get to hear your laugh. That I’ll ever get to say ‘I do’ on the altar with you. Tetsuya please, say something!” Kise broke down crying again. It’s all he ever seemed to do anymore. He lay his head on Tetsuya’s chest, shaking, crying. Too distracted to notice the very, very slight squeeze on his hand.   
This whole year, Tetsuya could hear everything. Every word. He could never seem to move or wake up in the slightest. This small, insignificant, was the most significant thing. He still couldn’t speak. He still couldn’t seem to make himself wake up. He wanted so badly to comfort his Ryouta, and yet he couldn’t. At least now, he could squeeze Kise’s hand. And let his own tears fall from his eyes. He tried so hard to let Kise know he was okay. He squeezed again, a little more pressure this time. Enough for Kise to notice now.   
Kise lifted his head, his sobbing cut off suddenly.   
“Tetsuya…” he said. A small smile appeared on his face. The first genuine one in over a year. “Oh my gosh, Tetsuya.” He kissed the hand he was holding. And then he kissed the lips of his love. It was a breakthrough, small, but still large enough to restore Kise’s hope.   
***  
Tetsuya’s strength grew each day after that. He was able to respond to yes or no questions by using his hands to squeeze or tap. Kise was extremely happy that this was happening. The doctors, Midorima included, had said that Tetsuya could wake up any day now. Kise made sure not to leave his side the majority of the time. He slept in the hospital now, Murasakibara bringing him food from home and the staff allowing him to shower in their personal showers in the hospital.   
All Kise had to do was wait and be there when Tetsuya woke up.   
Two months after the first hand squeeze, Tetsuya spoke. He wasn’t quite awake yet and he only spoke this once. The words he spoke drove Kise to tears.   
It was the day of their anniversary of dating. Kise had just told Tetsuya that he loved him. And Tetsuya responded.   
“Love you too,” he had managed to say. It surprised Kuroko himself to hear his voice, muffled and crackly as it was after over a year of not being able to speak. Kise couldn’t help himself. He just had to kiss Tetsuya. So he did. And Tetsuya used as much strength as he could gather to kiss him back. Kise pulled away, almost expecting Tetsuya’s eyes to be open, but alas they were not. He was a little disappointed but knew that it was a long process to wake up a comatose patient. This just meant he was closer than ever to having the love of his life waking up.   
***  
He wasn’t there. Kise had to pee really badly and left to use the restroom.   
While he was gone, a nurse walked into the room to check Tetsuya’s vitals. She glanced at his chart and made sure all the machines were working properly.   
Kise was washing his hands.   
Tetsuya’s heart rate sped up to an alarming rate so the nurse quickly called the doctor. The doctor rushed in with two more nurses trailing behind him. He didn’t have time to ask what happened as the monitor flatlined.   
Kise was walking down the hall.   
A defibrillator was wheeled in as fast as they could. The doctor shouted orders at the nurses. They ripped the hospital gown from Tetsuya’s body and gelled his chest in preparation for the machine.  
Kise raised an eyebrow at the commotion in the hall.   
His heart slowed. Time froze.   
He pushed past workers and visitors alike to get to Tetsuya’s room. A male nurse kept Kise from going inside. He was desperate. He was shouting. He had tears streaming down his face.   
“Clear!” The doctor said. Tetsuya’s body jerked up at the electric shock. He didn’t wake.   
“Raise the amp!” A nurse did so. “Clear!” Another jump. His heartbeat started again and Kise heard a gasp from in the room. Someone gasping for breath.   
“Let me through!” Kise pushed past the nurse holding him back and ran into the room. The staff looked at him while his gaze never left the young man with pale blue hair and eyes that shone like diamonds.   
“Tetsuya…” he let out.   
“Ryouta,” Tetsuya replied. A small smile gracing his face. “I missed you.”   
The staff moved out of the way because Kise needed to be with his beloved. He kissed Tetsuya and Tetsuya kissed back. He was awake. He was finally awake. And Kise couldn’t have been happier. That is until about nine months later when they both said ‘I do’.


End file.
